Marking two decades since the legendary game debuted across the Atlantic, giving players everywhere the opportunity to become rock legends. Not in reality, though you'd be hard-pressed telling that someone who has nailed the epic lengthy guitar solo before an enthusiastic crowd of friends.
Developed by Harmonix, the game gave players a plastic guitar peripheral to match coloured notes moving along the screen in time with the music. Each riff mimicked particular chords, creating the sensation of a genuine live show.
The studio had already tried its hand with rhythm games prior to teaming up with the publisher, later purchased by Activision in 2006. Together, they established the foundations for a surprising massively profitable franchise that had a significant influence for many musicians featured, showcasing classic groups to millions of younger players.
A former executive, former COO of Harmonix, remembers the initial financial challenges of licensing the songs – even though the first two games primarily featured cover versions.
“We rerecorded all the music because the cost prohibitive,” he says. “Despite having the publishing rights alone, it was nearly impossible. We failed to secure acts such as the Who – RedOctane was operating on a shoestring budget, and we were fairly certain it would fail. But once the game became a hit, album purchases and radio play increased, everyone wanted to be in.”
He adds: “Among the amazing things was how many parents got in touch expressing gratitude for introducing their kids to the music they adored. It became an intergenerational phenomenon.”
Classic Rock Finds a New Audience
Irish group one featured act had Never Too Late in the 2008 release the popular installment. Lead musician the artist remembers how the series brought older hits back into vogue: “The game offered a bigger, younger audience. Generally this had been seen as music that was past it, but then when it was featured on the game and teenagers were finding it, abruptly it was cool. This validated it, eliminating the ‘dad rock’ label. It gave our catalog renewed popularity.”
In 2008, the band's debut album was still not available in the US, so the game served as a primary platform for exposure for the band during their a North American tour opening for the rock giants. “The roadies had on the song on the tour bus, and some of them knew us from Guitar Hero,” he notes.
Rock’s Heavyweight Spin-offs Enduring Impact
Music's heavyweight names soon capitalised on the series’ popularity, with Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen starring in dedicated spin-off titles that focused on each band’s catalogue and related lore, visuals and legendary status. For example, the Aerosmith edition, reportedly earned the group greater revenue than any of their studio albums. It moved well over 500,000 units upon release, while sales of Aerosmith’s music saw an increase of up to 40% at a time as the industry was already collapsing.
Guitar Hero still motivates quick-handed fanaticism within the community. Earlier this year, an online personality achieved a remarkable feat of DragonForce’s the challenging track – an infamously tough power-metal song popularized through the game – on Clone Hero, a freeware game with similar mechanics but an array of personalization features. The song is difficult even in expert mode, let alone performed at double speed while hitting a single one of the thousands of cues. They claimed it took nine months of practice.
“Guitar Hero is a fun, fantasy thing. Just as with other games, that doesn’t mean you ought to pick up a real gun and go to war,” notes musician the artist.
The band had already wrapped up a profitable run when Through the Fire and Flames was featured on Guitar Hero III, yet he explains it turned them into a household name. “I remember our distributors calling to tell me that we were selling albums like crazy,” he shares. “Popularity surged on the subsequent tour, and we performed right ahead of top acts at the event.”
Indeed, DragonForce’s exposure from Guitar Hero proved so vast that it risked eclipsing all other the band has done. Last year, the track featured in a trailer for a major film. “Previously I felt differently, but now I accept it,” he admits. “Should you just listen to one DragonForce song, that's fine – everyone’s got their own path in music and I’m glad we played a role in fans' experiences”.
Enduring Legacy from the Iconic Controller
The best marketing, whether it’s for automobiles, apparel or video games, extends beyond mere transactions – it evokes a longing. Was the game able to harness this? “That’s exactly what our team aiming to achieve,” Dornbrook says. “That thrill of performing as a rock star in the spotlight. From day one, the creators felt that humans have a natural human desire to make music, and they wanted to leverage innovation to enable everyone to participate”.
Most installments were released over a mere half-decade from 2005 to 2010, featuring derivative titles like DJ Hero, complete with a spinning deck, and Band Hero. Subsequently, the publisher’s interest on peripherals died down, aside from a brief comeback several years later.
Games such as Clone Hero and newer releases have kept the scene alive, with expectations of something from the founders on the way. A new studio has entered work on their first rhythm-based title. Original co-founders are participating as special advisers. Are gamers ready to embrace another game following the classic?
“We thought those games might become like Madden allowing annual releases,” he remarks. “There’s so much new music it could remain perennially popular, thus I remain hopeful. It's entirely possible for it to persist for future fans.”
